OTT's Me-Too Experimentation: So Many Choices, So Little Variety

对于在线视频来说，这是一个激动人心的时刻. We’re seeing tons of experimentation, with new services launching almost weekly.

受到Netflix成功的启发, dozens of companies have created their own low-cost, all-you-can-watch subscription services that feature a mix of older and original TV shows and movies. 数十种服务 ... 都在做同样的事情.

OK, maybe there’s not that much experimentation. Maybe the only experiment taking place is how many monthly subscriptions the average viewer will put up with before feeling the financial strain.

当然，并非所有的服务都要花钱. There are two business models: subscription and ad-supported. Both can be successful given the right price and the right mix of content. Crackle, Go90, and one Hulu tier are ad-supported. You can watch all you want as long as you view the commercials—you pay with your attention.

I thought 2016 would be an exciting year for OTT experimentation, with new business models testing the waters. 但到目前为止，这是一个哈欠.

点菜服务在哪里? 离线浏览选项在哪里? I’d like to see OTT companies experiment in those areas, because I think consumers would jump at both.

换一种观点, I talked over OTT experimentation with Dan Cryan, the senior director of media and content for business 信息 company IHS. 第一个, 克莱恩带我去学校, pointing out that there’s a lot more experimentation in OTT than I’m acknowledging: There are premium services (Netflix, 亚马逊)和小众服务(Crunchyroll). Virtual operators (PlayStation Vue and Sling TV) are finding success, Amazon is providing one-stop access to other services, HBO将直接面向消费者. These are all things that have never happened before.

I know when I’m beat: There’s a good deal of experimentation going on. Maybe I’m overlooking it because I’m not seeing the new features I want.

As for a la carte, Cryan doesn’t think it will take off. “The TV business in America has grown up and grown rich on the bundle. The bundle has proven a very effective way to help justify price increases to consumers on the one hand, but also for channels to get more favorable terms out of operators,克赖恩指出. “There has been a perfect alignment behind the bundle from the business side of this equation, 和消费者, 一般来说, have bought in to this despite the public rumblings to the contrary. There are some moves to un-fix this, but they are still few and far between.” Those moves include Amazon offering add-on packages and HBO selling directly to consumers.

I’d still love to see an option like Sling TV, but where subscribers choose the channels they want from a longer list. I believe it will come someday, but not in 2016.

离线观看呢?? Amazon Prime is currently the only subscription service that supports this, 而且只适用于iOS, 安卓, 和消防移动设备. Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said during a recent earnings call that his company should “keep an open mind on this.“所以这是可能发生的. 它会改变游戏规则吗?

“Game changer, I’m not sure,” Cryan says. “Do I think it would be a meaningful enhancement for an important set of consumers? 绝对. That important set of consumers being just about anyone who gets on a plane.”

Yes, this is really a frequent-flyer feature. 但别忘了地铁通勤者.

Offline viewing would be a nice value-add for existing customers, 克莱恩认为,, 但它不会赢得很多新用户.

While there seem to be a lot of me-too offerings in OTT, if you scratch the surface you’ll see that new business models are being born. They may not offer everything we could wish for, but this is the testing ground where tomorrow’s TV habits are being created. It really is an exciting time for online video— for both the programs on the screen and the business decisions behind it.

This article originally ran in the June 2016 issue of 流媒体杂志 被称为“模仿实验时代”.”